Mobile stations, such as smartphones, can include support for multiple radio access technologies. Examples of these radio access technologies include Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) and Long Term Evolution (LTE). Many wireless networks have been initially built using legacy 2G (e.g., GSM or CDMA) or 3G (e.g., Wideband CDMA, Enhanced Voice-Data Optimized (EV-DO)) technologies and have later been enhanced with 4G technologies to provide improved service capabilities and data rates to customers.
Deploying new radio access technologies on existing legacy wireless networks can take a significant amount of time and planning. This is because there are many variables including geographic area, location of cell sites, transmission frequency used, construction permits, operating agreements and fees, etc. that can affect deployment. Devices that operate on such enhanced legacy networks often have to include support for multiple access technologies while providing coverage (or footprint) so that coverage of a newer network fully overlaps coverage of a legacy network. For example, 4G devices may support packet switched Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) type voice operation over a 4G network and also circuit switched voice over 3G or 2G networks. Some networks and devices support voice call continuity across packet switched 4G networks and circuit switched 3G/2G networks, and there may be fewer concerns about not having a full overlay of the 4G network to match the legacy 3G/2G network. For example, in networks that do not support voice call continuity, having a complete overlay becomes an important factor in determining a time frame to launch an enhanced VoIP service such as VoLTE (VoIP over LTE). Thus, validating coverage of different networks in a geographic region is necessary. Furthermore, when multiple technology networks are logically overlayed on top of each other, their respective coverage or service availability may not always be completely identical. Therefore, multiple mechanisms are used to balance the traffic in between the different technologies (e.g., circuit switch fall back, hybrid mode support between LTE and CDMA). Analyzing multi-mode operation and validating each technology's availability/coverage is a key performance evaluation in such a multi-technology network.
One approach to determine availability of multiple technology networks is to move or drive test equipment through a target market (such as a city or any region). This approach can be time consuming and logistically challenging. While device original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) may use a chipset vendor's Application Programming Interface (API) to access certain features on the device, internal operational or connectivity states of a device may not be made available to OEMs or wireless network providers to, for example, validate network coverage. This makes collecting and analyzing such data difficult.
As the foregoing illustrates, a new approach for device state derivation may be desirable.